Karen opened the wooden front door to her small cottage. Keith and herself have been happily living here for twenty seven years, bought up their two children, Clive and Grahame. She closed the door quietly behind her thinking Keith could be asleep as she heard no usual tinkling in the sun room. He had set up a small card table where he designed mosaic pictures and then he'd go down to the local market on a Sunday morning and sell them for a hobby. People loved them. Being a tiler by trade he had picked up skills that helped him create individual master pieces of animals, trees, cars and even peoples faces. The unique way he designed them made people marvel over the selection before buying two or three for presents.

Karen frowned feeling a tremor of nerves sweep through her body. She place her handbag next to the soft blue lounge they purchased twenty two years ago. It was still in mint condition. Clive and Grahame were never allowed to eat or drink on them as children which help preserve them. The walls of the lounge room were covered with original artworks Karen had done throughout the years. She had made a successful business and Keith was able to cut back his work hours spending more time doing the maintenance around the house and maintaining their half an acre yard. There were trees to always be trimmed, dogs to be washed and not to mention leaves to be cleaned every few days. Most of Karen's Paintings were portraits of Keith, Clive and Grahame. There were no grandchildren at this stage. The boys were so busy with their little businesses. Clive followed his fathers footsteps and set up a tiling business where he travels to do work all over Australia and therefore had not thought about marriage. Of course, he would bring home the occasional girlfriend and claim they are close friends. Karen and Keith would look at each other with amusement in their eyes. As for Grahame, he works in the city with a firm who sell kitchen things. He had bought a set of pots and pans home to show them what he was doing. Karen was taken back by the performance of the complete system. Claiming to cook a whole roast in half an hour and the vegetables as well. Of course, the cost was outrageous, but Grahame insisted he would make a fortune with two years and he did.

Karen pealed off her shoes and placed them on the top row of the homemade shoe rack Keith made when the children were young. She slowly walked past the lounge room and into the sun room. Keith was no where to be found, so she decided coffee was on the cards then made her way into the kitchen. A wave of fright whistled through her body. Her hand slapped against her mouth. Tears instantly stung her eyes. Her heart pained like never before when she felt her body tumble to the floor.

© Colette R